The story is nearing its end, so a new era is dawning in Schmicago. In this episode, we saw many references to more recent productions – does this mean they've given us a teaser for a third season?
Warning: spoilers for the second season of "Schmigadoon!" follow below.
Previous recaps:
Tensions Rise
The season finale begins with the Narrator Titus Burgess silently ceding the stage to Ariana DeBose (who has been woefully underused this season due to her skyrocketing popularity), instead of the now-familiar reprise of "Welcome to Schmicago." Her number is called "Over and Done" – and it unexpectedly references the musical "Dreamgirls," which premiered in the next era of musicals. Is Schmicago ready to move forward?
The previous episode ended with tycoon Otto Kratt (Patrick Page) kidnapping Melissa (Cecily Strong) to force her into marriage. And to make her more compliant, her husband Josh (Keegan-Michael Key) is being held hostage by Sergeant Rivera (Jaime Camil).
Meanwhile, lawyer Bobby Flanagan (Jane Krakowski) is also under Kratt's thumb and forces Melissa to sign all the necessary documents. When Kratt tries to sing an aria for Melissa, she immediately cuts him off – just like in the first season, where she stopped the dancers from performing the era-typical "ballet in a dream." Fun fact: judging by the intro, Kratt's aria was supposed to be "Being Alive" from "Company."
Meanwhile, Sergeant Rivera holds Josh tied up in a basement (very reminiscent of the mise-en-scène of the climax in Sweeney Todd), when Kratt calls this very basement (where is there even a phone?) and orders the sergeant to kill Melissa's husband. Josh tries to buy time by telling parables – just as the hippies taught him, following the canons of the musical "Godspell."
Crossover of the Century
At the orphanage, Miss Codwell (Kristin Chenoweth), it seems, has begun to truly enjoy caring for the children, though out of habit she masks it with gruffness. We remember that in the previous episode, Dooley Blight's (Alan Cumming) revenge on Kratt failed, so now he bursts into the orphanage and demands someone be put under the knife to satisfy his bloodlust. Miss Codwell doesn't want to allow this, so she offers Blight a very spicy alternative. Ooh la la!
In parallel, we are also shown Topper (Aaron Tveit) and Jenny (Dove Cameron) indulging in amorous pleasures. No matter how upset the couple is with Melissa and Josh – as soon as they hear that the main characters are in trouble, they set off to help them without a second thought. Blight and Miss Codwell also head there.
All of this culminates in a scene in the basement, where the vast majority of the characters end up. As we remember, Jenny is actually Dooley Blight's daughter, who is convinced that her father killed her mother many years ago, and therefore hates him with all her heart. But the misunderstanding is resolved by Sergeant Rivera, who is touched by Josh's parables. Yes, it was Kratt who killed Blight's wife many years ago, framing the hapless butcher – apparently, he also killed Elsie.
Chaos at the Wedding
Now that the characters have come to an understanding, they can all go together to rescue Melissa from the wedding taking place at the Kratt Club. In the middle of a confrontation, Dooley Blight wants to stab Kratt, but due to Jenny's shout, he only manages to pin the rich man's tailcoat to the stage.
When all hope seems lost – Miss Codwell cuts the rope holding the magnificent chandelier above the couple. And this is already the second reference in the episode to later musicals, because it parodies one of the most famous scenes from "The Phantom of the Opera." Thus, Schmicago is already confidently charting a course for the future.
Because of Dooley's stuck tailcoat under the cleaver, Kratt doesn't have time to run away and is crushed by that very chandelier. All the characters perform a reprise of the song "Kaput" and feel genuinely happy. Could this be the happy ending everyone wanted?
Happiness Reigns in Schmicago
The viewer is shown how the fates of the main characters turned out.
Madame Frau (Ann Harada) became the manager of the club and ceded the prima donna position to Sergeant Rivera (the author's pig-like squeal at the sight of Jaime Camil in Dr. Frank-N-Furter's costume from "The Rocky Horror Show" was heard from space).
The hippies set off to conquer the world of jurisprudence together with Bobby Flanagan, to dismantle Kratt's remaining monopoly through legal means.
Topper and Jenny use their skills of telling parables and singing songs, taking the orphans from the shelter under their wing.
Dooley Blight and Miss Codwell jointly open a successful pastry shop, whose signature item becomes cookies shaped like a bloody butcher's knife.
And as for Melissa and Josh, it's time for them to go home. The Narrator Titus tries with all his might to convince them to stay in the exciting world of Schmicago, which contrasts so sharply with the gray reality where escaping problems isn't so easy. But the couple has already decided that they want to share life together with all its difficulties and hardships, performing a reprise of "Something Real."
A Happy Beginning
The last twist of the season – it turns out that behind everything was that very leprechaun (Martin Short) we saw back in the first episode. Moreover, his name is Stephen (a nod to the main character of this season, composer Stephen Sondheim), and he has a brother named Oscar (after Oscar Hammerstein II, whose musicals were so highlighted in the first season and who was Stephen's mentor in his time), responsible for the events of the previous season.
The Narrator Titus worked for the leprechaun Stephen all this time and now wants to take a vacation, working on his personal life with Sergeant Rivera. His position is immediately taken by a female narrator – which also became a tribute to the new productions of the musical "Pippin," in which the role of the Narrator began to be played by women.
To the closing – and, in my humble opinion, the most touching – song performed by Martin Short, "A Happy Beginning" (which is incredibly reminiscent of "Rainbow Connection" from "The Muppets"), Josh and Melissa safely cross the bridge.
Keeping Schmicago in their hearts (after all, music is still playing in the background), they continue to enjoy life. Josh has taken on mentoring young interns, just as he once did with the hippie commune, and Melissa is finally expecting a child.
They turn the corner where the final scene of the musical "Godspell" was filmed, and disappear into the crowd. The last Easter egg of the season – among the crowd, you can spot showrunner and composer Cinco Paul.
We will greatly miss this Schmicago, which made us remember all those wonderful musicals. But we eagerly await the continuation – and wonder which cast member will don the mask of the Phantom of the Opera.
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